Twelve months ago, Kimi Antoneri was still unable to legally race in Formula 1. Without a special distribution, the Italians were 18 years old and less than two weeks into their ability to obtain a FIA Super License.
However, he already knew he would become a Mercedes driver in 2025.
Following testing of the previous car (TPC) that ran at Spa Franco Champ prior to last summer vacation, Antonelli moved forward in Racepac, helping to convince Mercedes that it was worth betting as a replacement for Lewis Hamilton.
Antonelli himself admits that, although very systematically calculated, is a gamble given that he says it has developed “on a large scale” over the past year.
“I’m thinking about the sudden curve of what I’ve learned,” Antoneli recalls. “I wasn’t in the race last year when I was racing with my team, and I wasn’t driving, but it was a really good learning to watch and see.
“So I feel like I’m learning a lot and I feel like I’m getting more about the situation.
Something that he said when Antonelli was announced, his now church member George Russell stood out. Russell pointed out that the experience helps improve the rookie, but that doesn’t make him faster. That was an aspect that already had to be in place.
“I’ve always believed I’ve gained a lot of experience over time in terms of how to deal with race weekends, tires, and the way I handle teams, but I don’t think I’m faster today with Raw Pace than I was 17,” Russell said.
“And I don’t think you have speed or you don’t have speed. You absolutely have speed. He proves that in all his categories.”
Teammate George Russell is confident in Antonelli’s raw speed. Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images
Russell said there was a mistake, and that it was all part of the learning curve. Looking back now, Antonelli agrees that the speed of raw hasn’t changed, but says that his ability to handle other aspects of being a Formula 1 driver is an area he had to develop.
Mercedes didn’t just give him a TPC outing. There was ample integration in the team far from the race weekend. There are also programs such as media training, and we faced mock press conferences and broadcast pens earlier this year. An outside expert was brought in and interviewed Antonelli, and the 18-year-old watched his appearance to understand his body language and interaction.
It came after Mercedes had already made a media and sponsor commitment to Antonelli last year, and was exposed to some of the distractions that could be ejected for the driver. That’s an area where the rookie still admits he’s spent time identifying him as extremely important.
“First, I took the time for myself (it was a big lesson), and I understood it a little later than the first half of the season, but it was very important.
“I think you realize you need time for yourself, especially to be prepared, to be in the right mode, to be in the right mood, and to be as fresh as possible when you get back in the car.
“I was draining batteries because I feel like there are races that don’t work outside the track, and when I got back in the car, I wasn’t mentally fresh.
“I was really trying so hard, but I just couldn’t do it because I was mentally exhausted and couldn’t do that.
“So, I really understood, especially when I got the triple header. The first triple header was clearly overseas. For me, it was much easier than the European triple header. But I started with the home race, obviously a lot of emotions, the first home race.
“I had already remembered by the end of Friday, I was exhausted. I was exhausted. I thought it was difficult because I was mentally exhausted. And for that I carried this to the next few races. And it wasn’t easy.
The next triple header that Antonelli faces will be the final three races of the season. It feels like a long way to go – and a big challenge from Las Vegas to Qatar Sprint and Abu Dhabi – but ironically, it was a more familiar region that proved troubling for Mercedes’ protégés.
The first podium of his career in Canada offers anomalies in the harsh European races.
“I think in European season, obviously I put a little unnecessary pressure on myself just because I was driving on a truck I already knew.
“That’s why I felt like I didn’t know about it on the truck because I had no hopes, I was driving naturally, and I was seeing what was going on and what was going on as a result.
“And in a European race, I was like, ‘Okay, that’s a track I know I have to do well.’ But this didn’t strain me, I wasn’t relaxed, I drove under more pressure, and it also affected my performance. ”
High Point was Antoneri’s podium at Motorial. Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images
In many ways, it creates the strange trend of this year. Antoneri was very impressive early on, but the suspension upgrade that made the car tricky to drive in Imola coincided with his own mistakes associated with rising expectations and pressure and slowing outcomes. A step back, Antonelli says that this year is at a higher high than expected at this stage, but his focus is on achieving that standard more regularly and knowing how it was done.
“I definitely exceeded what I was expecting. I definitely didn’t expect to get a pole or a podium soon. The idea is, of course, always go there and win – obviously going into the season.
“So, definitely, in some respects, I’ve surpassed my expectations. The goals are always the same, but I’m winning. In other respects, I feel like I’m performing poorly. And I’m on some weekends, because I’m obviously trying to get as many mileage as possible to learn as much as possible.
“It’s like having a lock, and I feel like I couldn’t reach my full potential because of this. Now that I’ve experienced situations where I have more of my hands, I have a slightly different approach and now I’m trying to explore more limits.
“But in the situation I am in, I still don’t know how much a car can give. I know that a car can give me a little more, but what I’m trying to do now is to try and explore this limit more.
“So it’s a bit of a less conservative approach and I feel like I’ve arrived at qualifying with too many question marks these days, so I’m also trying to push myself in order to get more qualifications ready.”
As Antonelli says it’s fair to explain that he’s trying to find the lock’s key, searching for those answers is not an easy task.
“Yeah, precisely – I think so mainly about qualifying. Of course, I’m learning and experiencing it, but when it comes to racepace, I don’t feel that there’s this lock. Of course, I’m not completely close, but in qualifying, I find this key and find this key to unlock the full potential.”
It was a challenge that Mercedes and Antonelli knew would face his rookie season, and the patience that both the team and the driver approached it gives him the opportunity to open the door to consistent performance earlier than later.
